Anniversary
by M.Marle
Summary: "My parents were cut down right in front of me. I was eight..." Set the night Mako and Bolin's parents were killed.


**Tell me why this is longer than most of my paper for school… Also, I hate myself so much for writing this.**

**Summary: _"My parents were cut down right in front of me. I was eight…"_**

**Rating: T (violence, character death)**

* * *

Bolin shifted uncomfortably as Mako fixed the buttons on his shirt, his bottom lip pouted with annoyance. Mako refrained from teasing his younger brother about how he had managed to screw up such a simple little task, such as buttoning his shirt, but knew that would only serve to further frustrate the kid.

"I could have done it myself you know," Bolin protested once Mako finished. Mako stood up and brushed the dirt off of his trousers. Fixing the collar of his shirt, Mako just rolled his eyes at the young boy.

"Yeah, yeah sure," he teased. Bolin gave his brother a playful shove of the shoulder, still slightly annoyed by the teasing but not enough to be legitimately angry with his brother. Mako laughed quietly and continued to fix himself up in their tiny mirror. Fixing his hair so that it was slicked back, Mako looked over at Bolin who was having trouble making his hair 'look fancy'.

"I hate dressing up," Bolin whined, brushing his hair in every which direction in an effort to find the best fit. Shaking his head, Mako walked over and brushed back Bolin's hair in a similar style to his own. He stuck his index finger into his mouth and then gently tugged on a strand of hair on Bolin's forehead, creating a small curl.

"There you go, champ," he mused, watching Bolin gleam at the mirror.

"Much better! Thanks Mako!" Bolin smiled brightly at his brother who always knew what to do.

Mako gave Bolin a small pat on the shoulder, "No problem, Bo."

The sudden sound of heels clicking against wooden floorboards echoed outside of their door. Mako looked up to find his mother's head poking in looking in both directions for them. Her short, black hair was curled just under her chin in a bob and her hands where against her ear, trying to fix the backing to her favorite earrings. When her golden eyes found them, she first blinked in surprise then smiled with pride.

"There are my handsome boys. You both sure do clean up nice," She stepped into the room, her red, evening dress brushing past her knees. She walked over to the two brothers and placed gentle kisses on their foreheads. Mako and Bolin smiled up at their mother, who was now using their mirror to make sure that her earrings were in place.

"Are you sure you want us to tag along tonight, mom? It is dad and your anniversary after all," Mako questioned, shifted anxiously next to her.

She turned to him and touched his cheek, "Of course, honey. Your father and I have had nine wonderful anniversaries together, but we wanted to spend our tenth with the best kids we know," she gave him a wink, which caused Mako to roll his eyes.

"No need to get sappy, mom," he said, his tone playful. She pressed a slender hand to her mouth to cover a small laugh.

"Okay, okay. Let's get going. Your father has probably been waiting for a while and we have reservations," she handed the boys their coats, helping Bolin into his though he insisted that he could do it himself. Mako grabbed his red scarf and wrapped it neatly around his neck. Taking her sons' hands she walked them out to the car, their father reading the paper casually in the front seat.

A big burly man with salt and pepper hair looked up at them with emerald green eyes as they approached the car. Looking at his watch, he raised his eyebrows and shrugged at them, "Only 20 minutes late. New record!"

Their mother shot their father a glare, which proved to be ineffective as her husband let out a loud, infectious laugh; one completely opposite to her quiet, demure one.

"Oh don't give me that look! I was just kidding," he said once his laughter died down. Sighing, she buckled Mako and Bolin in before seating herself into the front of the car.

"Just drive, Mr. We're-So-Late," she leaned over to kiss her husband, which only caused a unison of "ewwws!" from the backseat.

Looking back at his sons, their father gave them a wise smile, "Hey now, one day you're going to want to kiss girls too! Just you wait."

Bolin sat up in his seat and pounded his chest, "Not me! Girls are icky!" Shrinking back, Bolin looked at his mother shyly, "Uhm, except you mommy. Of course."

A collective laugh filled the car as they drove away…

* * *

"What a great meal, eh?" their father said, picking his teeth with a toothpick as they all exited the restaurant. Their mother's arm linked with his as she held onto Mako's hand, who in turn held Bolin's.

"Very good. We should come here more often," she mused. The family walked down the street towards their parking space. The sun had long since set and the cool winter breeze tickled their cheeks. Bolin huddled close to Mako to keep warm while Mako pushed his scarf higher to block out the cold air. Passing by a small candy store, the brother glanced over quickly, eyeing the variety of sweets. Their father smiled to himself as he watched his sons quietly long for the desserts. Reaching into his pocket, he lifted out some spare change and nudged Mako's shoulder.

"Hey Mako, why don't you and your brother head over to the candy store and pick out something?" he placed the change into Mako's gloved hand. The boy stared at the money as should Agni himself came down and gave it to him.

"W-what? Really?" Mako looked up at his father, completely taken off guard. Bolin peeked over at the money and quietly counted it to himself.

"Whoa, that's a lot of money!" Bolin cried, eagerly gripping Mako's shoulder. His father ruffled Mako's hair and smiled at both his children.

"Yeah, why not? You boys were good tonight and you haven't been pains in my rear lately. Have a ball," he felt his wife nudge his stomach at the 'pain in the rear' comment.

Mako and Bolin hugged their parents excitedly, "Thank you!" they recited in unison and ran towards the candy store.

The brothers loudly clamored over what they would buy and what they should save for later. Their mother sighed and looked up at her husband, resting her head against his strong shoulder, "They're not going to sleep tonight, you know that right?"

"Ha, yeah I know," he said, turning towards her. Leaning in, the couple gave each other a passionate kiss. Wrapping his arms around her tiny waist, he lifted her up suddenly, hugging her to him. She let out a tiny squeak and gripped the front of his shirt for support.

"Sweet Agni, you scared me," she said. He pressed his lips to hers again and they both smiled.

"Happy anniversary, honey," he said against her lips.

"Happy anniversary. Now put me down, you big brute," she smiled and gave him a quick peak before lowering herself back to the ground. He sighed and kept and an arm around her waist as he waited for his sons to return with their loot.

Lost in their one moment of pure bliss, they couple didn't notice the loud, threatening footsteps behind them…

* * *

A loud scream was heard from outside of the candy shop. Mako turned to look out the shop window and noticed flames and rock flying towards a group of thugs. Mako's heart dropped to his stomach as he watched the scene unfold before him. _There was no way it could be who he thought it was._ Gulping, Mako looked over at Bolin, who hadn't seemed to realize what was going on. He was innocently looking at a wall of candy bars, deciding which he would want most. Mako quickly walked over, keeping as straight a face as he could muster.

"Hey, Bo. I'm just going to head outside really quick and ask mom and dad if they want something too," he explained, hoping his brother would leave well enough alone and _stay put._ Bolin glanced at his brother and beamed. _He trusted him to stay by himself!_

Bolin nodded proudly, "I can take care of myself!"

"I won't be long," Mako said before running out the shop door, the bell ringing behind him.

Mako's legs burned as he ran towards the scuffle in front of him. He hoped he wasn't too late or too weak to help. He needed to help _somehow. _He watched as his father sent another rock discus towards the largest of the group, who dodged and propelled a fireball at him. The sudden collision between earth and fire sent a blast towards Mako, causing him to go flying back into a nearby dumpster. Smashing against the container, Mako's vision went blurry for a moment. He faintly heard someone call his name before his vision cleared again. Blinking several times, Mako looked up to see his mother running towards him. Her face was covered in soot and debris and her dress was torn at the bottom. His father stood in front of her, taking the brunt of the attacks as she tried to reach her eldest son. His mother shouted something out to Mako, something about getting to safety, but Mako's ears were still ringing and he could barely make out a word. A harsh cry escaped his father's lips as the firebender he was fighting slashed his throat with a fire-whip. She turned back towards his father and cried his name, running to help him out. Mako watched, paralyzed in his spot. His mother sent a blast of fire towards the large man, who Mako now assumed to be the leader of the gang. Mako watched as the man sent another fire-whip towards her, cutting straight from her throat to her collarbone. Falling lifelessly in a heap, Mako held back the need to vomit as he watched her blood pool around her.

Frozen in his spot, all Mako could do was watch as the firebender sent another blast of fire into his father's heart for 'good measure'. The rest of the thugs laughed as they ransacked his parents' belongings; his mother's purse, his father's wallet, they even _ripped _off her favorite earrings. Regaining some movement, Mako hid behind the dumpster as the thugs walked by him. They had forgotten all about him, which was good for him since he knew that there was no way he could even fight one of them off, much less all of them. A silent rage and sadness came over Mako as he watched them leave, the leader wearing a smug, triumphant look on his face. They laughed and disappeared around the corner into the night.

It took Mako a moment to regain full feeling in his legs. He stood slowly, avoiding glancing at the enviable. Mako took a shuddering breath and looked over at the scene before him. His father was lying face down on the pavement, the blood still spilling from his throat. His mother was on her back, staring up at the sky. Mako slowly walked over, slowly as though time had stopped. Mako looked at his mother, her eyes were still open. Mako let out a small gasp at how dull and lifeless they were, eyes that were once so gentle and full of life now stared blankly upwards. He looked down and noticed that her hand was holding onto his father's, no doubt in a final effort to be close to him. Mako hadn't noticed when he dropped to his knees, body quaking sobs over taking him. Large tears streamed down Mako's face and he gripped the fabric of his knees helplessly.

"Mako?" Bolin called, causing Mako's eyes to shoot open. He quickly turned back to see Bolin, holding a large bag of candy, looking around for his brother or parents. Standing up quickly, Mako ran over to him and hugged him tightly. Surprised, Bolin just looked at his brother oddly.

"Mako? Mako! What's wrong?" he asked. Before he received his answer, Mako covered his eyes with his scarf. Bolin whined and reached to pull it down, "Hey what's the big id-"

"Bolin. Listen to me," Mako's voice was stern, although shaky. Disquieted by the odd tone in his brother's voice, Bolin closed his mouth and stopped fussing with the scarf.

Taking a deep breath, Mako held his brother's shoulders, "Bolin," he started, unsure of how to go about telling his brother what he had just witnessed, "Bolin, mom and dad are—they're… dead."

Saying the words was too much for Mako and he felt himself begin to shake again. Fat tears began to stream down his cheeks again. Bolin was quiet, the bag of candy in his hand dropped to the floor soundlessly as he could only hear his older brother's deafening cries. Bolin had heard Mako cry before, over little things, but now, Mako was _sobbing_. Mako was completely broken next to him and no funny joke could cheer him up this time. Bolin wrapped his arms around his brother and buried his face in his chest. He hadn't realized that he was crying until he felt the fabric around his eyes grow heavy with tears. As the realization hit him, Bolin began to wail and his legs became rubber beneath him causing Mako and him to fall to their knees. Mako stroked his brother's hair and arm in comfort, though he himself was still unsettled by what had happened.

Mako looked up and stared at the bloody scene before him, wishing that he would wake up at that very moment and have his mother sitting beside him, stroking his hair and telling him it was only a nightmare. But she wouldn't be there this time. He wouldn't wake up to find her holding a cup of tea to calm his nerves and lull him back to sleep. Or see his father pop in to ask him if he needed someone to beat up the spirits that dared scare _his_ kid. Mako closed his eyes at the full realization that he would never experience those moments again. What was worse was that _Bolin_ would never experience those moments again.

Wiping his eyes, Mako gently lifted his brother up. Moving his arms backwards, Mako lifted Bolin up so that he was sitting on his back in piggyback position. Bolin wrapped his arms around Mako's neck and rested his face against his neck.

"Don't take the scarf off, okay Bo?" he warned, his voice tired and worn. Bolin simply nodded and clung to his brother desperately, as though he would disappear too if he let go. Mako paced by the scene again, glancing at his parents' faces again despite knowing it would only scar him further. He raced with Bolin on his back towards the police station. His legs, however tired, carried him almost effortlessly to his destination.

"What are we going to do now, Mako?" Bolin's small voice asked. Mako took a breath and continued running.

"We're going to the police station, Bo. We're going to get them help, okay? We'll be okay. I promise," Mako's words were breathless. Bolin nodded against him again.

"Okay," he said softly, Mako could hear Bolin's voice crack and he felt tears against his neck.

"Bolin, I promise you we'll be okay," he said in the most convincing tone he could manage. Bolin gave him no reply and Mako wondered whom he was trying to convince more… Bolin or himself.


End file.
